From wildly imaginative fantasy to rapt religious contemplation to ineffable nature poetry, Persian art has sounded the chords of human emotion in works of consummate subtlety and refinement. This splendidly illustrated volume, which accompanies a traveling exhibition opening at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, focuses on painting, manuscript illumination, calligraphy and drawing. There are remarkable images of a seated angel, dervishes, lovers, mystics, a coy woman with a veil, a man attacked by a dragon. Among the more than 400 Persian and Mughal Indian treasures are illustrations for the Shahname , a medieval compilation of epics and tales depicting Iran's legendary heroes. Soudavar, an expert on Persian manuscripts, and Beach, a gallery director in Washington, D.C., follow the tumultuous course of Persian art from successive Greek, Muslim Arab and Mongol invasions to the striking, somber oil portraiture of the 19th century.
Copyright 1992 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
This sumptuous volume, containing 474 color illustrations, introduces readers to a portion of the Soudavar family's Art and History Trust Collection, now located in Houston. The book is actually a catalog of an exhibition that will travel to Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, and Toronto. Given its emphasis on the art of the Persian world from the 15th to the 18th centuries, and the wealth of the holdings shown, no one will dare undertake research on this aspect of Persian art without consulting this collection of paintings. Soudavar has carefully prepared historical overviews that introduce each major section and document the major artists and patrons. Essential for any library with collections on Asian or Islamic art.
- Donald Clay Johnson, Univ. of Minnesota Lib., Minneapolis
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
